Editorial: An enduring partnership
The story of India-Russia relationship is all about keeping an old romance alive despite the lure of more attractive partners coming along. What makes the bilateral ties more fascinating is that both countries have remained friendly and cordial despite the growing pressure on them due to the rapidly changing global geopolitical scenario. In fact, on several international issues, they are not on the same page. But the relationship has withstood the test of time, weathered many a storm and remained robust in an otherwise uncertain and unforgiving world. The terms of engagement may have changed over the years, but the India-Russia ties have largely remained strong and formidable. The flurry of activity that marked the just-concluded visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin — his cordial meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a string of agreements signed between the two countries — had an air of reassurance about the long-term partnership. This is despite the pulls and pressures on both countries due to the rapidly shifting global power dynamics. Developments like Russia’s growing dependency on China due to sanctions from the Western nations and India’s increasing convergence with the United States and its inclusion in Quad (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue comprising US, India, Japan and Australia) have not hampered the efforts to deepen the bilateral relations. During Putin’s visit, the two countries cemented a pact on military cooperation for a ten-year period and signed 28 agreements covering defence, science and technology, higher education, commerce and industry, the key among them being the deal for joint production of over six lakh AK-203 assault rifles at a manufacturing facility in Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi.
The defence ties between the two nations have been consistently strong, with India being heavily dependent on Russian technology, maintenance, procurement of hardware and spares. For many decades, Russians have been collaborating with India in its indigenous manufacturing programmes and were amenable to transfer of technology, which India was finding difficult to get from others. It includes some major systems like nuclear-powered submarines, warships, nuclear reactors, space programmes and flagship projects like Brahmos. Russia has reportedly shipped the first deliveries of the S-400 long-range air defence systems, the agreement for which was signed in 2018, and India is determined not to back off from it despite the possibility of sanctions by the United States. It is to the credit of Indian diplomacy that concerted efforts are being made to deepen the bilateral ties with Russia, thereby sending an important message to China and Pakistan. The two sides want to see bilateral trade, stagnating at under $10 billion, hit a target of $30 billion by 2025, and bilateral investment to $50 billion. Putin’s visit is expected to help in laying a clear path for expansive economic cooperation, and generating a better understanding of each other’s imperatives on global issues.
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